Reasons To Be Cheerful

Yay. We’ve gone beyond the shortest day with many reasons to be cheerful. From now on each and every morning and evening will see increased daylight as temperatures climb and winds subside. Birds will sing and flowers bloom. We will say goodbye to news & media doomsters and their visions of apocalypse around every corner. The viruses avian and human will fade into distant memory. My gold shares will rocket as crypto crashes, again.

Happy 2022 everyone. May all your days be bird filled.

Here’s a post I knocked up earlier while waiting for the rain to stop.

It was quite recently and not for the first time that a reader in the US thought that a UK Coal Tit was one and the same species as the North American Black-capped Chickadee. Their  respective scientific names are Periparus ater and Poecile atricapillus, two related species of the same bird family known in the US as "chickadees" and in the UK as "tits". The two species are remarkably similar but where similarities occur in other species of animal or bird, confusion is avoided by understanding and/or investigating the respective scientific or Latin names.

Black-capped Chickadee

Coal Tit

For many birdwatchers the use of scientific names is boring or inconsequential, at best a riddle and of interest only to ornithologists who speak Latin. But as well as a means of allowing people throughout the world to communicate unambiguously about birds, the name give an insight into the origins of the scientific nomenclature and hence the bird itself. Here are some examples and a few pictures from Another Bird Blog archives.

There’s a question that often crops up on TV quizzes, one designed to trap the unwary. Which bird has the Latin name Puffinus puffinus? The correct but perhaps perplexing answer is of course Manx Shearwater. In days gone by the word “puffin” was a synonym for a shearwater and not the unrelated seabird Atlantic Puffin, hence it was the shearwater and not the puffin which earned the Latin title of Puffinus puffinus. 

The “manx” refers to the species’ former abundance on the Calf of Man a small island lying to the south of the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea, while "shearwater” describes the birds’ mode of flight which skims or shears the water. 

Manx Shearwater - Puffinus puffinus

The scientific/Latin name for Wigeon is Anas penelope. I’m somewhat disappointed that the Anas part of the name for such a creature should simply mean duck-duck. It’s from the Latin anas and the Greek respectively, a duck that in Greek mythology was reputed to have rescued Penelope when she was thrown into the sea. 

Eurasian Wigeon - Anas penelope

Would anyone who has slept under a duck down duvet that contains feathers plucked from an Eider duck Somateria mollissima disagree with the Latin meaning “very soft woolly body”? 

Eider -  Somateria mollissima

Now for an easy one, Barn Owl. Tyto alba simply means white owl. I think we can all agree on that one for the often ghostly apparition that will sometimes allow a photograph or two.

Barn Owl - Tyto alba

One might think that the rustica element of the Latin name Hirundo rustica refers to the reddish forehead, throat or the often pink underparts of our common Swallow. In fact it means a rural or rustic swallow. The Swallow is a bird which graces our countryside for a few short months of the year. Long may it continue to do so until the politicians succeed in concreting over the entire landscape of England. 

Barn Swallow - Hirundo rustica

I’ve not heard of any Bohemian Waxwings Bombycilla garrulus finding their way to the UK this autumn and winter but if they are around soon I’ll be looking out for the “chattering silk-tails” that their Latin name describes. The Bohemian part of their common name tells us the species’ wandering habits were reminiscent of tribes of gypsies or Bohemians. The silk tail is self explanatory when an observer or lucky bird ringer receives close views of this beautiful species. 

Bohemian Waxwing -  Bombycilla garrulus

The Phylloscopus collybita of Chiffchaff translates as Phylloscopus a leaf-watcher, and collybita originating from a word meaning money-changer. The clicking, repetitive sound of the Chiffchaff’s song "chiff-chaff, chiff-chaff" was thought to resemble the sound of coins being clinked together. 

That’s a really interesting if somewhat esoteric explanation which may or may not be the truth. Readers should think about that one in the Springtime while watching and listening to a Chiffchaff in the tree canopy.

Chiffchaff -  Phylloscopus collybita

There was a Jay Garrulus glandarius in my garden just this this week, taking a break from raiding the young oak tree in a neighbours garden. Jays are often silent but “acorn-eating chatterer” would apply on many occasions. 

Jay - Garrulus glandarius 

Please excuse my bout of name dropping today. It's not something I normally do or even like to hear from others, but hopefully there will be more posts and news soon. 

In the meantime here's wishing readers, new or old a very Happy Christmas.

Good Game, Good Game

On Sunday I set off for Cockersands and Conder Green where an early tide might do the trick in bringing a few birds closer. 

Like lots of birding sites in June the area of Conder Green is proving remarkably consistent in species and counts. Regular readers or those looking for something to catch up on might notice a few “goodies” in amongst the regular “dross” of 15+ Swift, 2 Reed Warbler, 2 Sedge Warbler, 5 Reed Bunting, 4 Whitethroat, 2 Meadow Pipit, 2 Tree Sparrow, 2 Little Egret, 2 Grey Heron, 8 Lapwing, 1 Greenshank, 1 Grey Partridge, 2 Curlew and 1 Great-spotted Woodpecker. 

Yes, the Curlew are possibly fresh-in with the Greenshank definitely new and either “late going” or “early coming back”, depending upon someone’s understanding of the breeding cycle of northern waders. I favour the early returning scenario, especially since a number of Lapwings appeared hereabouts today. 

Whether the Grey Partridge is “real” rather than a from £13.80" sub-species is anyone’s guess.  And yes, in case anyone is wondering, even an expensive and reintroduced Grey Partridge is literally "fair game" to a shoot.

Grey Partridge

There seemed to be lots of Lapwings in the Cockersands area too, with a total count of 80+ and a single count of 35 in one field. The Lapwings easily outnumbered the 15+ Brown Hares, several Oystercatchers and 2 Red-legged Partridge with which they shared the fields. On the circuit also, 4 Sedge Warbler, 5 Whitethroat, 2 Reed Bunting and 5 Tree Sparrow. 

 Lapwing

Lapwing

Eiders have bred close to Cockersands again. From the path I could see a single pair with 5 young on the edge of the tide with other adults in attendance and ten birds in total; more youngsters could well emerge in the next days and weeks.

Breeding hereabouts is a regular occurrence now as an offshoot of the colony of 700+ pairs just across Morecambe Bay at Walney Island, until recent years the most southerly breeding colony in England. Quite where the females nest around here is anyone’s guess as not only do they possess incredibly cryptic plumage, they are renowned for sitting amazingly tight, not vacating their nest until stood upon. I recall gull ringing expeditions to the Walney Island dunes, grabbing hold of reluctant Lesser Black-back and Herring Gulls while at the same time treading carefully to avoid standing on invisible Eider ducks.

Eider

Along the shore some newly arrived Black-headed Gulls, 2 Little Egret and a small number of Ringed Plover and Dunlin mixing freely on the shore and pebble beach. These latter species have been around for a week or two, part of their strong passage north, and unlike species like Greenshank and Spotted Redshank which return early, if these loiterers don’t get a move on soon they will meet themselves coming back. 

 

Ringed Plover and Dunlin

It was 10am, the Sunny Sunday crowd out and about, so time to head home after a good morning’s birding. 

Join Another Bird Blog soon for more of the same game.  

News With Views

Just birding this morning, beginning at Knott End where the time of year begins to dictate a few visits, particularly when early morning rising tides push waders and hopefully terns in from Morecambe Bay. 

No terns this morning although Oystercatcher numbers are building with 220+ today as they leave inland breeding haunts to congregate on the sands and the mussel beds. It was mostly Oystercatchers today, with just a couple of Redshank, 35 Curlew and several Shelduck. From the jetty I counted 9 Eider and then a fly past from a visiting Peregrine again. It’s just a glide across the River Wyre to Fleetwood where the Peregrines have bred again this year, rearing one youngster. Alongside the golf course I could see 3 Pied Wagtails along the first fairway and in the nearby conifers a Whitethroat was busily feeding a fledged youngster. 

Pied Wagtail

Peregrine

Eider

I noted a couple of Swift and House Martins then motored on to Pilling. Lane Ends car park was quiet, just the 2 regular Blackcap and a newly singing Chiffchaff but no sounds from the patches of reeds where Reed Warblers have been noisily singing of late. On my travels yesterday I checked two nests, one of Whitethroat the other of Goldfinch and both of them had been washed out, two nests better placed to survive the lashing from wind and rain that a typical Reed Warbler nest must have endured this past week. 

A walk to Pilling Water found 2 Common Sandpiper,105 Curlew, 30 Redshank, 14 Oystercatcher, 15 Goldfinch, 4 Linnet, 5 Greenfinch, 3 Swift, 8 Swallow, 3 Pied Wagtail, 16 Skylark and 4 Corn Bunting. The Corn Buntings are definitely making a breeding attempt here, confirmed as I watched a bird collect nest material from the sea wall and then accompanied by a second bird, drop with the material into the silage. I now think there may be two pairs in this field with others in similar silage fields towards Cockerham. As Corn Buntings are now so scarce in this area of Lancashire it’s good that they may be utilising this habitat, but more than a little risky if their timing coincides with silage cutting.

Corn Bunting

Down at Fluke I chatted with a HiFly guy who’s looking forward to the shooting season in 9 week’s time, if only the maize would grow and the silage become dry enough to cut. Its odd how according to our own particular interests we all take a different view of how things should turn out.! But over the recent controversy about Buzzards we agreed on one thing - Buzzards are too lazy to take game birds, they prefer to sit around and wait for a spot of road-kill or other carrion.

Tune into Another Bird Blog again on Sunday for more news and maybe a few views.

After The Jubilee

It was “cool” start today, but here I’m not referring to Cool Brittania, my state of mind, behaviour or general feeling of well-being, but as usual on Another Bird Blog, the poverty of the British weather. It was so unwarm this morning I reverted to a bobble hat and three layers on the top half of my body’s rapidly fading ex-Mediterranean tan. 

Thirty plus House Martins at Lane Ends kicked off the morning as they fed in the lee of the plantation and over the sea wall where they had found a glut of insects. Maybe the insects were leftovers from last night, where the creatures found themselves drawn to the flame of a beacon lit by the people of Pilling for Her Majesty. 60 years of travelling the globe to exotic destinations; what a bird list she could have by now if only she had taken her bins and a good set of field guides: as usual I digress to matters less important than birding, but 4 days without proper news on TV is enough, without the added affront of 30 minutes of Paul McCartney. 

June is when the Starlings begin to flock, and there must have been 170+ of a herd of those brown, unlovely things, squawking for food from parents too slow to send their kids off to fend for themselves. Two Reed Warblers singing this morning, with a Blackcap and now silence from the Willow Warbler. More squawking came from the Jays busying themselves in making trouble for the nesting birds. 

Up towards Pilling Water I got a trio of surprises in the shapes of 2 singing Corn Buntings and an unseasonal Grey Wagtail. In other Junes I’ve seen singing Corn Buntings along here and I reckon they are loser males from elsewhere that either failed to find a girl, or refugees from nests destroyed in early cut silage fields; trouble is they don’t seem to get a lot of joy along here and pretty soon they move on. Can’t explain the appearance of a Grey Wagtail but nice to see all the same, as was a singing Meadow Pipit, the first here since the migrants sang briefly in April. 

Grey Wagtail

Corn Bunting

This was as good as it got, so I made my way up to Cockerham, Braides Farm and the high tide. Lots of Skylarks here, with at least 8 singing males with 3 birds seen feeding young, unfortunately for me all of those in rough, cattle-filled fields where ringers fear to tread. 

 Skylark

 

Many of the young Lapwings are now large enough to run and even break into flight, with the first signs of post-breeding flocking being a gang of 15-20 birds doing so. A good count of Curlew here with a count of 45 birds, probably all adults as any young will still be on the fells or fields. A couple of oddities here too with a single Wigeon on the sea and 2 drake Teal hiding in the ditches until the tide moved them. I hardly ever count the Shelduck here, but looking through them in the distance revealed the Wigeon and also a posse of Eider, 2 males and 4 females, the colourful males displaying to more brown, unlovely things. 

Eider 

After the celebrations most folk go back to work tomorrow. I’m afraid that for me for me it’s just more birding, but someone has to do it.

Two Ninenty Nine

I grabbed about three hours of birding this morning when I saw no sign of spring migrants, hardly surprising in the stiff north westerly I guess, and it is only March 8th. Here we are again wishing our lives away to see a few birds which will arrive only when they are good and ready.

In the way of passerines Fluke Hall turned up 2 singing Song Thrush, 3 Reed Bunting and lots of noisy Tree Sparrows about the area of the nest boxes. The wet stubble fields proved fairly quiet with 30 Golden Plover, 25 Redshank, 40 Oystercatcher, 14 Curlew and 50+ Lapwing, some of the latter in display mode again, but no sign of first nests yet.

Lane Ends including a walk to Pilling Water and then back produced a mixed bag of species, 2 European White-fronted Geese, 36 Woodpigeon, 2 Little Grebe, 4 Tufted Duck, 2 Little Egret, 1 Greenshank, 4 Skylark, 180 Shelduck, 1 Sparrowhawk and 1 Buzzard.

Sparrowhawk
Tufted Duck

Travelling along Head Dyke Lane in the direction of Knott End I could see a hunting Barn Owl across the fields to my left but there was nowhere to stop a car safely, so I continued up to the village. The rising tide realised a good selection of birds, with 360 Oystercatcher, 24 Eider, 15 Shelduck, 1 Cormorant, 4 Bar-tailed Godwit, 14 Turnstone, 3 Curlew, 10 Sanderling, 2 Pied Wagtail and 1 Rock Pipit.

Oystercatcher
Pied Wagtail
Eider

Apologies for the quick, short post today but please look in to Another Bird Blog again soon, and for anyone not a “follower”, sign up now to become Number 300.

Mixed Bag update

This is a little update from yesterday and today, a mixed bag of birding with a spot of ringing thrown in.

Today we had to travel up to Lancaster City so first called in at Knott End followed by a quick look at the geese at Lane Ends, Pilling before heading north up Death Row/Biker’s Mile towards Lancaster.

The tide was pretty much in at Knott End, all the better then for a quick count of stuff beyond the Bourne Arms, on the jetty itself or along the water’s edge, passerines and shore birds: 23 Turnstone, 9 Sanderling, 18 Redshank, 45 Shelduck, 2 Pied Wagtail, 9 Twite, 1 Black Redstart, 45 Shelduck

Twite
Eider

At Lane Ends 7 Eurasian White-fronted Geese were the nearest of a pack of about 300 geese at Backsands Lane. It’s difficult to get a shot of more than 3 or 4 of the white-fronts together because not only are they strung out across several yards, but like all crowds of geese some feed heads down while others stay heads up on the lookout for predators, until after a few minutes it’s time to reverse roles when “feeders” become “sentinels” and vice versa.

Eurasian White-fronted Goose

Back home I’ve caught more Goldfinch and a couple more new female Blackbirds; in the continuing cold, both thrushes carried fat scores of 3 and weighed in at 111 and 110 grams respectively.

As might be expected male Goldfinches continue to outnumber females; the sex ratios in Britain and in Spain suggest that that a greater number of females migrate than do males, and also that females tend to winter further south (Newton 1972, Asensio 1986, Migration Atlas 2002). There does seem to be a steady changeover of Goldfinches through the garden at the moment, perhaps just locally wintering birds so it will be interesting to note when the proportion of females increases. No sign of Siskins yet.

A young female I caught today still had traces of buff, juvenile crown feathers - compare with the fully coloured male, the extent of red behind the eye and the depth of red below the bill.

Goldfinch- first winter female
Goldfinch - adult male

Famous Footsteps

I’m still busy with family things this week and birding naturally takes second place, but on a rough old morning Sue and I took some fresh air up at Knott End, with a walk along the Esplanade and up river.

There was no sign of the recent Black Redstart, however in its place at the slipway and near the Bourne Arms I found 6 Twite, 1 Rock Pipit and 1 Pied Wagtail. Shore birds: 220 Dunlin, 11 Turnstone, 20 Redshank and 1 Little Egret. Lots of Eider duck in the estuary, 41 in all, plus 3 Red-breasted Merganser braving the swell.

Eider
Pied Wagtail

Not everyone who reads the blog may know the following piece of trivia. The artist L S Lowry often visited Knott End and probably stayed in one of the boarding houses on the Esplanade, houses now turned into flats or private dwellings. There are paintings in existence which show that his favourite location for painting was a spot near the top of the ferry slipway, just where the Black Redstart hung about. It was from this spot Lowry produced typical scenes of crowds of matchstick people hurrying along the jetty to and from the ferry boat.

No more than a few of these paintings have ever been found but there must be more. If anyone has one of these canvases tucked away in the attic I am happy to swop it for a bird photograph of mine.

No crowds of matchstick people today, it was almost too windy to stand up.

Not “A Lowry”

An Early March

There was a thick frost this morning, reminding everyone that the price of clear overnight skies in March may be a sunny day but an unwelcome cold start. So after de-icing the car for the second time this week I called in Damian’s shop at Knott End for supper time fish then I turned my attention to a little gloved and hatted birding for an hour or two.

The medium tide of about 10 am was just turning, heading into the Wyre from Fleetwood and Morecambe Bay but bringing a little mist that the weak sun could barely shift. But it wasn’t so bad that it stopped a count of sorts and even a few pictures of the assorted waders, or at least those that stick to the close shore and are more tolerant of early morning passers-by: 550 Oystercatcher, 32 Turnstone, 105 Redshank, 110 Knot, 90 Dunlin, 11 Curlew, 3 Bar-tailed Godwit and 2 Grey Plover.

Knot
Turnstone

The wildfowl numbers are quite low now after a number of Shelduck and Eider departed to breeding sites, so my count of 15 Shelduck on the water and 3 Eider loafing on the jetty was not unsurprising. I’d parked in the car park where early mornings there are always 2 Pied Wagtails tottering about, and then lining the car park wall, numerous Black-headed Gulls that arrive in waves with each new car, but quickly lose interest if no food appears from wound down windows.

Eider
Black-headed Gull
Pied Wagtail

Along the promenade the Twite flock on the seed numbered approximately 30 very flighty individuals today: they took to the air at the passing of every one of the numerous pedestrians, who in the main seem not to notice the nondescript little brown birds that grace their village each winter. There were 2 more Pied Wagtails on the frosted foreshore below the railings plus 2 Rock Pipits.

Twite

I took a run up to Lane Ends where the tide was full but distant in the now partially sunny haze. From here and the trek to Pilling Water and back the best I managed were 3 Little Egrets, a distant and predictably perched Peregrine, and a bunch of about 15 Skylark, not counting the one that rose singing above the nearest field. The inland fields held about 60 Lapwing and 95 Curlew, whilst way out on the marsh the sight of 700 Pink-footed Geese told me that it it’s still only March 3rd and I’ll have to wait a week or so yet for spring migrants and the chance of catching Wheatears again.

Tempus Fugit

There’s not a lot to report, a quick visit to Conder Green then a brief afternoon sortie to Knott End as time was of the essence today.

All the waders bar one seemed to be in the creek this morning, 2 Spotted Redshank up to their bellies, 2 Ruff, 3 Greenshank, 2 Common Sandpiper, 55 Lapwing, 28 Redshank, 4 Curlew, 1 Snipe and a lone Grey Heron, whilst over at the back of the pool a single Black-tailed Godwit played hide and seek behind the island. In the hawthorns by the screen hide a Lesser Whitethroat showed briefly but preferred to stay hidden while alarm calling. The flock of Goldfinch are rapidly depleting the thistles and I counted only 10 birds this morning.

Spotted Redshank
Goldfinch
Grey Heron

Braides Farm is major disappointment this year and even though I have permission to survey the land it has been so dry until recently that I haven’t walked the track for months. I stopped in the gateway today where in the distance I could see a Wheatear and an overflying Little Egret.

A combined shopping expedition and walk along Knott End promenade at lunchtime was fairly productive with at least 1500 Oystercatchers coming off the river to head towards the high tide roost, with a small flock of 18 Dunlin, plus 4 Grey Plover, and then bobbing on the sea 25+ Eider. Watching from near the jetty it was interesting to note a diurnal movement of Swallows come from the Fleetwood direction, cross the estuary and then head east into the wind and follow the tideline towards Preesall, in all about 30 birds in 15 minutes. I didn’t count the gulls; suffice to say that there were several hundred Herring Gulls, a couple of hundred Black-headed Gulls, plus 8 Sandwich Terns.

Not much to report and not much in the way of pics today either but my fingers are crossed for some ringing in the morning because outside my office the wind doth subside a little.

Eider
I've just realised that tomorrow is my first birthday, the day I started the blog. How time flies when your having fun. This is the first post.

http://anotherbirdblog.blogspot.com/2009/08/well-i-did-easy-bit.html

What's Next

There wasn’t a lot of point birding this morning with rain lashing down and a 30mph westerly so I did some IPMR work and saved the birding until lunch time when the at least the rain stopped, even though it remained windy. There was a likely looking tide due at about 3.15pm so I went to check it out at Pilling.

After an interval of a couple of months Little Egrets put in an appearance with 2 autumn birds out on the marsh so it will be interesting to see how their numbers build up here. In recent years the autumn Little Egrets outnumber the Grey Herons, as they did today with only one of the grey variety counted. The waders came in with the tide as they always do, but now as July moves on a bit more variety ensues. The Common Sandpipers have been back since 27th June but in small numbers, 6 today. Along the outflow I spotted a bird in unfamiliar summer plumage, a Turnstone, a bird we are more accustomed to seeing in winter plumage. Unfortunately I can’t claim to have taken the picture on the Arctic tundra where they breed but from where some leave about now. There were a number of Dunlin again today and I estimated 90 birds, with a single Golden Plover and coming in from across the north of the bay, 4 Grey Plover. Curlew numbers continue rising with 600 today plus 40 Redshanks and a single Greenshank.

Turnstone
Turnstone
Common Sandpiper
Dunlin
Grey Plover
Little Egret
On the incoming tide I counted 6 Great-crested Grebe, 3 Red-breasted Merganser, 4 Mallard and 9 Eider, all brown females or juveniles. Eiders are much more common here than formerly so I guess the Walney colony has finally expanded to take in south Morecambe Bay.

Eider
Three very vocal Kestrels patrolled the sea wall and the marsh today; it was probably the two juveniles making all the noise as they looked to have very fresh plumage.

Wind-blown or sheltering passerines were hard to find but 4 very green Greenfinch, several Linnets and the still displaying Meadow Pipit were duly noted.

Of course if we get even more rain, the tide comes in too far or the birding gets a bit quiet there’s always the option of trying some extreme motoring in my Suzuki.